Pain or Protection
by savetoniqht
Summary: Everything changes when it’s not just you that you’re protecting anymore, but your child as well. Casey/Other character. Rated for domestic violence.
1. Chapter One

Titles aren't my thing. They always suck, sorry. Summaries too.

All right, so Casey has to be at SVU a little longer than she really was for the timing to work out. It's not going to make a difference, but I do know that Casey wasn't at SVU yet in the beginning.

Also, okay I'm sure most people might not really even think of this but I'm a loser: Casey's daughter most likely almost definitely wouldn't have red hair/green eyes unless her father had those traits as well since they're recessive, but we'll go with it. :)

Also yeah, Casey gets abused again, sorry about that. To be completely honest, though, and you can hate me for saying this, Olivia Benson just seems like the type of person where if she were in abusive relationship she'd just kind of be like heeellllll no and have his ass in jail. Casey not as much. Agree or agree to disagree, either works.

**Disclaimer:** OBVIOUSLY I don't own anything.

* * *

_September 2002_

As Casey watched the seconds count down on her watch she could hardly stay still. She knew she was visibly shaking from the nervousness; she could barely hold the test in her hand. She couldn't take her eyes off of it, but at the same time it was making her sick just to look at it.

When she got drunk that night at the bar she knew that she just needed a no strings attached one night stand. The last thing she was counting on was having a memoir of the rendezvous. She wasn't proud of all of her decisions, per say, but she was only in her twenties, and successful lawyer or not she had needs too. She hadn't thought about that night once since then; four days after she was supposed to have started her period, however, she was certainly reminded.

She forced herself to look away from the clock for what felt like at least two minutes, hoping that the time would pass quicker if she weren't watching it move. When she did allow herself to look back, though, she almost had to laugh at the fact that it had barely been thirty seconds. The wait was getting unbearable, and when she felt the room start spinning around her she knew she had to get out of the confined quarters of the bathroom stall where she was waiting for the test.

She threw the door open, hiding the test behind her back just in case. She didn't want to take the test at home in case somebody came to her house and saw it, since there would really be no one else whom the test could belong to considering her lack of roommate. She didn't want to do it at the DA's office either—it just felt wrong—so the bathroom at the precinct was the place where she finally got the courage to do it. Besides, everyone seemed to hate her there already, so even if the detectives found out and thought she was a whore she didn't have too much to lose. After all, they'd definitely be the least likely to miss her while she was on maternity leave.

Glancing back at the clock again once she took in the open space and seemed to calm herself down a bit she realized it had only been three minutes. Technically it may have shown the results at that time, but she wanted to wait for five minutes to be sure—the last thing she needed was to see that she was pregnant and freak out, only to have it not be true. She had been in nerve-racking situations before, of course, but nothing compared to the feeling in her stomach as she waited for that test. She couldn't even remember the name of the man that she had slept with. She'd had plenty of one night stands before that she had never thought of again, but now she could possibly be linked to this random stranger forever.

"Counselor?" a voice interrupted her thoughts, startling her so much that she not only jumped nearly a foot in the air, but she almost dropped the test as well. She spun around to face the person, and then quickly hid the test behind the back when she realized that it was Detective Benson that was standing in front of her.

"Detective…" she said slowly, hoping that Olivia hadn't seen the test in her hand. The amused smirk on the detective's face said otherwise, however, and the tone of her voice confirmed any suspicions.

"What've you got there?"

"Oh… um… what?" Casey felt herself blushing and subconsciously ducked her head in embarrassment. She was never one to be at a loss for words, but what else could she really say besides the truth when the detective had already seen it? She and Olivia hadn't had the best relationship so far, and she certainly did not want the detective to see her like this. She had already broken down in her office the first night after she barged in on their crime scene, and she didn't want Olivia to thinks she was any weaker than she already was when she already thought that Casey was incompetent.

"What does it say?" Olivia finally asked, catching Casey's attention again. Casey slowly raised her head back up to face Olivia, and then glanced at her watch again. Four minutes. She shrugged, hoping that Olivia would take the hint that not only was it not ready yet, but Casey truly did not want Olivia to be the first one she shared this information with. She waited for Olivia to walk past her and do whatever else she had planned on, but she stayed planted firmly in place.

"You late?" Olivia tried again. Casey practically had to stop herself from rolling her eyes at either the detective's inability to take a hint or her pure stubbornness to let a subject drop.

"Four days," Casey muttered. She peeked at her watch again and practically felt her heart stop at what it said—it had been five minutes. She knew her hands were shaking, but when she realized her entire fate was possibly about to change with the results of that one test she felt her whole body start to shake as well. She felt as if the whole room was spinning around her once again and she had to take a deep breath before she could even function enough to bring the test out from behind her back.

Finally realizing that Olivia had no intention of leaving before she knew the answer as well, she slowly brought the test out from behind her back. She closed her eyes and took a few more deep breaths. Finally, slowly, she blinked her eyes opened and allowed the test toshow herfuture.

* * *

_December 2007_

"Mommy!" Sydney yelled as soon as Casey pushed open the door to her apartment and stepped inside. Sydney wore an enormous grin as she ran forward and straight into Casey's arms. Casey wrapped her arms tightly around her daughter then lifted her up and planted a kiss on her forehead, hugging her close to herself.

"Hi, dear. Sydney took a little nap today, so I'm not sure how she'll be. She could be wide-awake for hours, or she could crash at any minute. I guess you'll find out soon enough, though." Ellen Marcus, the woman who lived in the apartment above Casey, smiled brightly as she entered the room. She was not what one would refer to as elderly quite yet, but she was not too far off from that stage; she had the grey hairs to prove it, but she wasn't so elderly that Casey felt unsafe leaving Sydney with her while she was at work.

Casey laughed and rolled her eyes at Ellen over her daughters shoulder. "Thank you so much, Ellen. I hope she was good for you?"

"Isn't she always?" Ellen smiled again and nodded as she gathered her things and then walked past them and out of the apartment, closing the door behind her.

"Did you have a good day?" Casey asked as she lowered her daughter onto the floor. She finally relieved herself of her heels and threw her briefcase and her keys on the table by the door. She felt guilty about how much time she spent at work versus with her daughter, but she was fortunate to have Ellen available to help out, and she knew she was providing well so that her daughter would always have a comfortable life.

"I did! I made you a surprise, mama," Sydney squealed. She urgently grabbed Casey's hand and pulled her toward her bedroom, a huge grin spreading across her face. When she got to her room she made Casey cover her eyes while she pulled out her surprise.

"Okay, no peeking," she demanded. "I worked really hard."

Casey knew what the surprise was before it was placed in her awaiting hands, since she received one almost every day. She loved each one as if it were the first, and she never threw one out; her office was covered in the various drawings that her daughter had made for her. The squad room and Arthur Branch's office were decorated with their own artwork by Sydney as well.

"Okay, you can look!" Sydney exclaimed as she thrust the drawing into Casey's eager hands. Casey reached over to her daughter and pulled her closer to herself, stroking her hair gently as she examined the picture. The picture was of Sydney and Casey, both with bright, fire-engine red hair, and Casey's fiancée of almost six months, Jake. She kissed her daughter on top of her head as she knelt down next to her.

"This is beautiful, baby, I love it. I'm going to hang it up in my office tomorrow," Casey told her, watching as excitement filled her daughter's huge green eyes. "You like Jake, don't you?" She let out a sigh of relief as her daughter nodded excitedly. She knew this was a good a time as ever to tell her daughter the news.

"Hey, I have an idea. How about we get you in you PJs, then I need to have a pretty big girl conversation with you, okay?"

Her daughter's eyes grew even wider as she nodded with enthusiasm and ran over to her dresser, pulling out the first pair of pajamas she found. Casey knew her daughter well enough to know that any 'big girl' things would immediately get her attention, so she was careful with the phrase and only saved it for serious things. She helped Sydney change into her pajamas, and then allowed her to climb on her back so that Casey could give her a piggyback ride into the living room and to the couch.

"Baby, remember how we talked about how Jake and I are engaged and I told you all about what that means?" Casey began once they were settled. Sydney nodded in agreement, though Casey wasn't sure her daughter of four years and three months truly understood the concept of an engagement. It was because of her daughter that Casey still wasn't living with her fiancée. Fortunately for her Jake completely understood her daughter's needs, so although he had been reluctant he had understood and agreed to wait to move in together.

"Now, you remember how we talked about how Jake would become your new daddy and you were very excited about that?" Sydney nodded again, this time with a smile on her face. "Well, usually when you have a family, the mommy, the daddy and the daughter all live together, like we talked about. Right now only you and me are living together, but the daddy is living all by himself. How would you like it if Jake moved in here with us so that he could be a real daddy and we could be a real family?"

Sydney's whole face lit up as she took in the situation. Jake had been around for quite a bit of Sydney's life sincehe and Casey hadmet whenSydney was about thirteen months old, but he and Casey had only been engaged for a little while. Jake was a professor at a local university, and he had been a witness in one of Casey's trials after he walked in on a rape in progress. Their trial prep turned into meetings for coffee, and their meetings for coffee eventually turned into dates. While he had become somewhat of a fixture in Sydney's life, Casey didn't want to make things too complicated for her daughter before she could really understand what was happening. She made it clear to him on her first date that her daughter was the most important thing in the world to her. She had clearly explained that if they were going to work out as a couple then he would have to accept Casey's daughter and everything that went along with her having one. He promised that he would, and he had been true to his word, even when he had to wait six months before moving in with his own fiancée.

"I would really really _really_ like it! Where will he sleep? And I can call him daddy, right? When is he coming?" Sydney exclaimed as she bounced up and down on the couch. Casey laughed at the sight of her daughter; she was so relieved that her daughter not only was okay with the idea, but that she loved it. She leaned forward and gathered the bouncing redhead in her arms.

"Well, _daddy_ will sleep in mommy's room. And if it is okay with you, he will come move into our house tomorrow." Sydney clapped her hands in excitement, then looked up at Casey with a bright smile across her face. She giggled as she leaned into her mother and burrowed her head in Casey's chest, wrapping her little arms around Casey's slender waist.

"All right, sweetie, let's get you into bed so we can read some books," Casey said softly as she lifted Sydney up and carried her back into her bedroom. Sydney climbed into bed and Casey slid in next to her, picking up a picture book from the nightstand next to it. She read two books to Sydney, as she did every night, before getting out of the bed to tuck Sydney in for the night.

"I love you, mommy," Sydney said softly as Casey leaned over to tuck her in.

"I love you too, baby." Casey pecked her daughter on the cheek before turning out the lights and leaving her daughter to sleep.

* * *

Okay, let me know. :) This one is hopefully not going to be as long as the other ones, and I'm warning you now the ending mighttttt be one of those open for interpretation ones. 


	2. Chapter Two

By the way, Elliot is not back with Kathy in this and does not have the new kid. It won't make a difference except for I reference the fact that Casey is the only one with a family in the squad.

Oh, and also, in like every fic on here (including mine) Casey and Olivia and like best friends, but really on the show I think they're just awkward. Maybe that's just me, but it just doesn't even seem like they're friends. They're kind of awkward together. Like in Night and Blinded... I don't know, they just don't seem like it, so I went with that. (makes it more believable also.)

* * *

_March 2008_

Casey cursed under her breath as she caught sight of the clock that was perched on the edge of Munch's desk. It read 6:48, and Jake had made her swear that she would be home by seven. She had only needed to drop off some files at the precinct and then she could leave for the day, but she knew that she had to hurry to make it home anyway. She knew she would be late, but the sooner she got there the less angry Jake would be. She picked up her pace and had almost reached the door when Olivia called her name. Casey swore under her breath as she turned around to face the detective.

"What?" she asked, her eyes drifting to the clock again. _6:49._

"Casey, Peter Johnson just lawyered up; we need you to make a deal," Olivia informed her. Casey felt her heart start beating quicker with each word Olivia spoke. She knew she needed to get home. She couldn't believe that her life had come to the point where her husband was controlling what time she worked until, but she wasn't about to fuel his anger by being late despite his warnings.

"Olivia, can't we do this tomorrow morning? I _really_ need to get home." Casey silently pleaded with Olivia to somehow understand and agree that the meeting could wait, but there was no excuse Casey could use besides the truth to get away, and she wasn't about to go there.

"The only way we are going to get this sick pervert's partner off the street before he rapes another kid is if you make him a deal and he gives us the name. We need his partner's name, Casey, now." With that Olivia turned around and began walking back toward the interrogation room, not even giving Casey another chance to object.

"Liv!" Casey called, rushing over to where Olivia was standing just outside the door. "Olivia, I promised Sydney I'd be home by seven. I can't be late, I really can't be late." Olivia rolled her eyes and shot Casey a look, motioning toward the door.

"Your daughter isn't even five years old, Casey, I'm sure she doesn't know the difference between 7:00 and 7:30. Just get in there and make us the deal, then I'm sure you can go."

Casey sighed, taking deep breaths to calm her nerves before she went in to face Peter Johnson, their latest pervert, and his lawyer. By the time they finally agreed on a plea bargain the clock read 7:08. She shot out of her seat as soon as the deal was made, gathered her briefcase and ran to the door without saying a word to anyone, ignoring whoever it was that was calling her name behind her—she just needed to get home.

* * *

Sydney watched as her father took another sip straight from the clear bottle in his hand. She didn't know what it was, but she knew that she was never allowed to touch it. She could tell that it started with a "V" and she saw that it had a goose on the outside of the bottle, but she didn't know what it was; she had never seen her dad drink it before

"Where the hell is that damn mother of yours?" her dad asked her as he walked over to her, still holding the bottle in his hand. She saw that his hand was shaking, and his voice sounded funny, like all of his words were connected. She didn't know what 'hell' or 'damn' meant, but she knew that they were bad words and that you were never supposed to use them. If her dad hadn't been acting so weird she would have pointed this out to him, but she was scared of the way he was talking and walking. She just stared at her dad as he took another long gulp from the bottle in his hand and looked at the clock again. She wished her mom would just come home already.

"She's late. It's 7:25. She's having an affair." Sydney stared at her father in silence, unsure of what to say. Every time he talked his words were sounding more and more funny, and when he tried to stand he was wobbling on his feet. He sounded really mad, but she didn't know what an affair was. When her dad moved closer to her she smelled his shirt and almost started gagging. She had never smelled anything like it before. It was strong and it smelled terrible, but she had no idea what it was.

Finally she heard a key turning in the door and she stood up, determined to reach her mom before her dad did.

"Hey guys, I'm so sorry I'm late!" her mother exclaimed as she hurried into the apartment. Sydney ran over to her and threw her arms around her waist, burying her head in her mother's stomach.

"What's wrong, honey?" her mom asked as she bent down so that she was at eye-level with Sydney. Sydney didn't really know how to tell her mom how her dad was acting, so she said nothing and just reached forward so that she was hugging her mom again instead. A few seconds later, though, her mom pulled away, and when Sydney looked behind her she saw that her dad was standing there looking angry.

"Syd," her mom said quietly, bringing her hand up to Sydney's cheek and resting it there. "Why don't you go run to your room for a little bit, okay? I have to talk to daddy." Sydney nodded slowly and leaned forward to give her mom a kiss on the cheek before she left the room, knowing that fighting with her mom would be futile. She started going to her room, but once she turned the corner so that her parents couldn't see her anymore she stopped and sat down in what had turned into her secret peeking place for when her parents fought. Lately her dad had started getting mad at her mom a lot. Her mom would always tell her to go to her room when her dad got mad. In the beginning she would obey her mom and go to her room, but as these occurrences were becoming more and more frequent she wanted to know what was happening. Eventually she established the secret spot behind the corner in the hallway to be where she hid so that she could listen to her parents without them knowing.

"You're late," she heard her father growl. He sounded angry, like he usually did, but his words were still all jumbled.

"I know, I'm sorry," she heard her mother say quietly. She had to strain to hear what her mom said back to him… she usually did. "I was just about to leave when they needed me to make a plea bargain. I'm really sorry." Sydney cringed as she heard the sound of someone slapping someone else. She didn't have to look to know that it was her dad that had hit her mom and not the other way around. It made her sad that her dad would hit her mom since her mom always told her that hitting people was never the way to solve her problems, but she couldn't say anything because she was not supposed to know that he did it. She wanted to run over to her mom and give her a hug, but she knew she would be in trouble if she did.

"You were having an affair." Sydney rolled her eyes when her father used that word again. She wished he would use another word instead of "affair," because she still didn't know what that meant.

"Jake, please," her mom said even quieter than before. Her voice sounded tired and sad. "I am not having an affair. I love _you_. I'm not cheating on you." Sydney hoped that that would be the end of their fight, but then she heard the sound of a slap again.

"You bitch!" she heard her father yell. She gasped as she heard him use that word—she had heard it before, but her mom had told her that it was a terrible word and that she could never use it.

"Jake! Do not speak that way when Sydney is here, you know that." Sydney started to smile a little bit that her mom was telling him that it was bad, but then she heard a loud crash. She almost ran over to where she knew her parents were standing, but she stopped herself just in time when she remembered that she couldn't.

"Don't you **ever** tell me what to do," she heard her dad say. He sounded calm when he spoke, but at the same time he sounded so angry that it sent shivers up Sydney's spine. She heard her mom groan, and then she listened as her mother apologized over and over, begging her dad to leave her alone.

Sydney closed her eyes and covered her ears with her hands when tears began filling her eyes. She hated when her parents fought, but more than anything she hated when her dad hurt her mom. She loved her dad, but she loved her mom more than anything else in the world and she hated it when her mom was sad, and especially when she cried. Sydney pressed her hands tightly against her ears so that she couldn't hear their voices anymore, but she could hear the phone ring over the sound of her mom crying.

* * *

Elliot sat impatiently tapping his foot as he waited for Casey to pick up the phone. They had gotten the name of Peter's partner from Peter, but Elliot couldn't remember what the deal had been and Cragen was asking about it. He hated to bother Casey at home since he understood how little time she had to spend with her daughter, but Cragen wouldn't let it drop so he needed to know.

"Hello?" A male voice answered the phone. Elliot paused in confusion for a moment before he realized that he had called Casey's house phone instead of her cell phone.

"Hi, Jake? It's Elliot Stabler. Is Casey there?" Elliot heard a long pause at the end of the phone before Jake even moved it away from his face.

"Why is Elliot calling you?" he heard Jake ask. The sound was muffled as if Jake were trying to cover the mouthpiece with his hand, but Elliot could hear through it.

"Because, Jake, I work with him." Casey sounded exasperated and tired, even more so than when she had left the station.

"But he's calling you at home."

"Well then don't you think you should give me the phone so I can talk to him?" Elliot couldn't help but chuckle at the impatient tone in Casey's voice, but it was worrying him how Jake was being so suspicious about it.

"Don't get smart with me." Elliot stopped laughing immediately when he recognized the tone in Jake's voice. He didn't even want to admit that Jake's tone was starting to sound almost abusive, but he couldn't push the thought out of his mind.

"I'm not. It's just about work, Jake, please."

"Is that why you were late today? Because you were having an affair with Elliot? I knew it!" he heard Jake hiss. Elliot felt his heart start racing. The conversation he was overhearing was like a textbook case of abuse. He couldn't believe that Casey would keep a relationship like that a secret from them, but at the same time Casey still didn't seem to be too comfortable with the detectives so she probably wouldn't tell them anything.

"Jake, please, it's just about work. Let me talk to him." Elliot heard a long pause, then it was interrupted by the rustling sound of the hand being taken off off the mouthpiece and the phone being handed to another person.

"Hi, Elliot," he finally heard Casey answer. "Sorry about that, I was in the bathroom. What can I help you with?"

Elliot rolled his eyes, realizing that she truly was clueless if she thought that he hadn't heard any of her conversation with Jake.

"Is everything okay, Casey?" he finally asked.

"Of course. What can I help you with?"

Elliot got the information he needed as quickly as possible then ended the call, not wanting to cause any more trouble than he had already seemed to cause. He made a mental note to only call Casey's cell phone from now on. He tried to focus on the case at hand, but his mind kept on drifting back to Casey's relationship. She never really went out with the squad when they went out, but they had always attributed that to the fact that not only did she not feel comfortable with them, but also she was the only one of them who really had a stable family and a young daughter. He realized that Casey often worried about getting home on time, but nobody really wanted to stay at the job any later than they had to. She had also had her share of injuries, but not so many that any of them had really been too concerned, though she did tend to wear long sleeves even when it was warm out. He made another mental note to talk to Olivia the next time he saw her.

* * *

Casey could not believe her husband had just accused her of having an affair with Elliot Stabler, and she certainly couldn't believe that he had done it while he was on the phone. Had she not been so afraid of him she would have yelled at him right then and there, but not only did he have anger issues to begin with, but she could tell that he had been drinking as well.

The first couple of months that he lived with them were the happiest of Casey's life. They got along great, Sydney loved him, and they truly were like a family. He and Casey would get in their share of fights, but it was nothing of great concern. Eventually, however, he began to become increasingly controlling and violent with her. He would never yell or hurt Sydney—if he had Casey wouldn't have hesitated to kick his ass herself—but he would sometimes cross the line with Casey. If Sydney hadn't already grown so used to having Jake around Casey may have left him when it started. Since he never hurt Sydney and Casey was able to keep their fights a secret from her, however, Casey chose to tough it out. After Sydney had finally gotten used to the idea of Jake living with them, she didn't want to change anything now, so she dealt with Jake's temper. Usually he was able to keep it under control. He lost it a couple of times, but Casey always made Sydney was nowhere near them when that happened.

"Jake, please," Casey begged as she saw Jake reach for the nearly empty bottle of vodka again. She knew that he would probably get angry with her for trying to stop him from drinking, but the more sober he was the easier he would be to deal with.

"Shut up," he mumbled as he tipped his head back and poured the liquid straight down his throat. "I don't want you talking to Elliot anymore."

Casey stared at him with a look of disbelief on her face. "Is that a joke?"

"Don't talk to him."

"Jake, I _work_ with him! How am I supposed to not talk to him?"

Jake shrugged. "Outside of work I do **not** want you talking to him, understand?"

Casey nodded slowly in agreement, knowing it would be futile to argue with him about her alleged "affair."

"You didn't drink in front of Syd, did you?" she finally asked when he poured another stream of vodka down his throat. He had never done it before; he knew full and well that Casey would absolutely not tolerate it. She gasped as he just stared at her blankly in response, as if to say "whom are you kidding?" She felt anger boiling up inside of her, and she turned away and stormed toward her room. She changed quickly into a comfortable pair of jeans and threw a hoodie on, then grabbed a suit for work the next day and hurried into Sydney's room. She grabbed a pair of pajamas from Sydney's drawer, then walked over to where her daughter was sitting on her bed, staring at her mother in confusion.

"Honey, we're going to go out for a little bit, just the two of us," Casey said softly, keeping her voice low so that Jake wouldn't hear her. The only reason she would even dream about leaving Sydney alone with Jake was because he had never hurt her or evenyelled at her, but she absolutely refused to let her husband drink in front of her daughter. She lifted Sydney up so that she was huddled against her chest, then grabbed her suit and Sydney's pajamas and silently slipped out the door without Jake even glancing up at them.

She strapped Sydney into her car seat and then started the car, pulling away from her apartment. She began driving around aimlessly, though she wasn't sure where exactly she was going. She finally settled on her office, figuring Sydney could sleep on the couch and Casey could figure something out for herself.

As soon as she helped Sydney into her pajamas she noticed that her daughter's eyes had started drooping in exhaustion. She slowly lowered herself down onto the couch, allowing her daughter to rest her head in her lap and curl up on her side. She spread her coat over her daughter and began gently stroking her hair, humming softly to her.

"Mommy?" Sydney finally asked, though her eyes remained sealed shut.

"Yeah?"

"Why are we at your office?" Casey smiled slightly, trying to think of the best way to answer.

"Well, your daddy did something bad and we didn't want to be there while he did it, so we came here." She let out a sigh of relief as her daughter seemed to accept the answer. She turned over, finally falling asleep with her face pressed against her mother's stomach.

* * *

Olivia was confused to see a dim light on as she approached Casey's office. It was almost nine o'clock and she just had to drop off some paperwork, but she certainly was not expecting to see anyone in there.

"Oh my god, you scared me!" a voice exclaimed as soon as Olivia opened the door. Olivia looked over to the couch where the voice was coming from and realized that Casey was sitting there. Olivia furrowed her brow in confusion, trying to figure out why Casey would be sitting on the couch in her office at this hour when she had Sydney and Jake waiting at home.

"What are you doing here?" Olivia finally asked.

"I could ask you the same thing," Casey teased back. Olivia smiled and held up the papers in her hands.

"Your turn."

Casey rolled her eyes and began to sit up, only to be stopped by a voice. Olivia jumped at the sound—she hadn't realized that anyone else had been in the office with them until she heard Sydney's voice.

"No, mommy, stay with me," Sydney pleaded. Casey smiled down at her daughter, then up at Olivia apologetically.

"Honey, I just have to go talk to Livvy for one second, okay?" she asked calmly. Sydney shook her head furiously and clung to her mother for dear life. Olivia watched as Casey leaned forward and wrapped her arms around her daughter. Olivia loved watching them together. Although Olivia had her doubts at first, Casey truly was an amazing mother, and she loved to watch her interact with her daughter. She could see how much Sydney meant to Casey, and she could see how much Sydney loved Casey back.

"Liv, top right drawer?" Casey finally said, as if Olivia should know what she meant. Olivia shot her a puzzled glance, but she went to the top right drawer of Casey's desk and pulled it open anyway. Finally understanding, she pulled the iPod out of the drawer and handed it to Casey, who immediately went to work finding a song for Sydney to listen to before she helped Sydney put the headphones in her ears.

"Jake was drunk. I didn't want him drinking in front of her," Casey explained once Sydney had the headphones in. Casey stared down at the floor dejectedly, as though she was ashamed. "I didn't know where else to take her, so I just came here."

Olivia almost had to roll her eyes at Casey for saying that she had nowhere else to go. While they still did not have the greatest relationship, she wished Casey knew that she was still part of the squad and that anyone on it would help her if she needed it. She would consider and Casey to be work friends, but even though they still weren't good friends she truly wished Casey had just called her, since Olivia gladly would have let them stay at her apartment; they all loved Sydney like their own daughter.

"You could have called me," she finally said. Casey shrugged, but kept her eyes glued to her daughter, who was still curled up on Casey's lap. Olivia stood awkwardly in front of her, trying to figure out how to approach the situation. Elliot had told her about the conversation that he had overheard, which Jake's being drunk helped explain, but it only made Olivia more nervous to see that Casey was sleeping at her office.

"Casey… this isn't easy to ask, but are things okay with you and Jake? Is he good to you?" Casey shot her an angry look at the question.

"Everything is fine, detective. Now if you'll excuse me, my daughter needs to get sleep. It's late." Casey's tone was icy and cool, more so than Olivia had ever heard from the young attorney. Olivia nodded slowly as she backed up from where Casey was sitting. Casey was still glaring at Olivia when she reached the door and then turned back around to face her.

"If you ever need to talk…" Olivia finally said softly before pulling the door shut behind her.

* * *

So basically I already have the main part of this story written. I didn't really want to do the background information, but I guess it's kind of necessary, so sorry to be rushing through this. It isn't going to be a long story, I only wrote the background info to go with the actual climax of the story I guess.

Please review:)

Geez, this is long.


	3. Chapter Three

Casey tentatively pushed the apartment door open, shielding her daughter with her own body just in case Jake was angry that they had left and took it out on the first person that walked in. She had been awake half the night debating what to do about her marriage. She had made the "firm" decision that she was going to finally leave Jake multiple times throughout the night, but each time she would force her mind to wander back to the positive things about their marriage. She knew deep down that she needed to leave him, but at the same time she felt as though she had to stay. Eventually she would simply force herself to go back to thinking about how much she loved him. She knew he loved her too, and if she could just figure out how to work around his temper, she was sure that their marriage would be fine.

She slowly entered the apartment, juggling the bag of takeout she was holding, and then closed the door softly behind Sydney. If Jake was in the apartment at all he wasn't making a sound. She helped Sydney out of her coat and hung it up as Sydney ran off to her own room. 

Casey stepped forward into the living room and found Jake silently sitting on the couch, staring at the wall in front of him. He made no indication that he even noted her presence, and he just continued to stare straight ahead.

"Hi honey," Casey said timidly as she walked toward him. He slowly glanced up at her, but said nothing to acknowledge that he had even heard her. She cautiously walked closer to him until she was standing directly in front of him. He remained completely silent.

"Syd and I got some food," she tried, kneeling front of him. "Do you want to come eat with us?" He stood up abruptly without saying a word, causing her to stumble back slightly. Casey sighed in defeat, thinking he was just ignoring her, but was surprised when she saw that he had stood up to get three plates and was setting the table—he usually made it clear that setting the table was _her_ job. He finally at down at his usual spot at the table and sat there, staring straight ahead again. Casey wished that he was being _some_ emotion—angry even—but he just seemed void of emotion. Anger was an attitude that she could handle, but she wasn't sure how to approach him this way.

She finally gave up talking to him and called Sydney in for dinner. She helped her daughter wash up and then washed her own hands before sitting down and serving everyone food. She tried a couple of times to make conversation, but Jake made it clear that he had no interest in doing so, so eventually they all just sat quietly and ate their meal.

The silence that surrounded the kitchen was soon interrupted by the sound of glass shattering on the floor. Casey tensed as soon as she heard the sound, cautiously sneaking a glance at Jake, who was staring angrily at Sydney. Casey stood and kneeled in front of her daughter, who had instantly begun to cry softly.

"I'm sorry, mommy," she whispered through her tears. Casey brought her hand up to her daughter's face and rested her hand on her daughter's soft cheek.

"Hey," she said softly, rubbing Sydney's back with her other hand. "It's okay, baby, it's just a spill. We all spill; there's no reason to cry."

Sydney nodded slowly as Casey kissed her on the top of her head. As soon as she stood up to grab a broom and the trashcan to pick up the glass, Jake stood up slowly, anger gleaming in his eyes. Casey watched nervously as he stomped over to where her daughter was sitting.

"You stupid brat!" he yelled, sharply and roughly pulling her chin up so that she was looking at him. "Why do you always fucking spill stuff? You're just like your goddamn mother!" Before Casey could even react to the situation, the sound of his hand slapping Sydney's face filled the air. Sydney immediately burst into hysterics and pulled away from him, nearly falling out of her chair.

As Jake brought his hand back to hit Sydney again Casey ran over to where her daughter was sitting faster than she even knew that she could move and pushed Jake back so that she was standing between them. She glared at him with as much force as she could muster and forced him to step back.

"Don't you dare touch her," she seethed, pinning him with her eyes. She could deal with him yelling at her, she could deal with him beating her, but under no circumstances would she allow him to treat her daughter the way he treated her. He paused for a moment, seeming to calm down, but Casey knew that just meant he was more furious; she had to get her daughter away from what was inevitably about to happen.

"Sydney," Casey soothed as she quickly turned around and kneeled down in front of her daughter, who was sobbing had tears streaming down her face. "Baby, go wait in mommy's room, okay?" Sydney looked up, puddles of tears falling into her lap, and slowly nodded before running past her father and disappearing into the hallway.

Casey stood up slowly and cautiously, only to be knocked down by a harder blow than she had ever felt in her life. "Don't. You. **Ever**. Talk back to me," Jake bellowed as he slapped her again. He reached forward and grabbed her by the arms, his nails digging into her skin as he held her tight.

"Jake, please, I'm sorry," she begged. She was trying to stay strong, but she couldn't hold it and began whimpering softly. She couldn't help but to wonder once again how the hell she had gotten herself into this mess; what she had done to deserve it.

"You stupid bitch," he sneered. "I am the boss of you, don't you ever, **ever** talk back to me. You hear me? I'll kill you, I will." He suddenly released her body, causing her knees to buckle as she fell to the floor. He stepped away and grabbed something off the table.

When Casey recognized the object that he had in his hand her eyes grew wide. Her husband had slapped her around plenty of times, but she had never spoken back to him before, which was obviously the reason that he was so angry now. She had no idea that her talking back to him would fuel his anger as much as it did. She hadn't realized that he could possibly get so violent; she had never seen him so out of control. He had a murderous glint in his eyes as he held the knife in front of him.

Knowing that his rage was so bad that if she didn't get away he wouldn't hesitate to end her life in a second, she used all of her strength to kick him in the groin, and then sprinted toward her room. She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw her daughter sitting just behind the corner, sobbing hysterically. She bent down to pick her up without a word and ran the rest of the way into her room. She slammed the door behind them and locked it instantly.

"Mommy," Sydney cried as she flung her arms around her mother's neck.

"Baby, listen to me," Casey told her firmly, devastated that her daughter had witnessed the altercation. "I need you to go into the bathroom. Lock the door and no matter what happens do _not_ come out until I, or someone else you trust, come to get you. No matter what daddy says or does do _not_ open the door. Promise me." Sydney gasped and squeezed her mother tighter.

"Mommy, no! I want to stay with you! Please!" she begged. Casey felt her heart shatter into a million pieces as she quickly released her daughter.

"Go, now. I love you, baby." 

Sydney slowly trudged toward the bathroom. She was barely at the doorframe when a loud thud drew Casey's attention away from her daughter. She turned quickly and realized that the thud was Jake throwing himself against the door. She leaned on the door as forcefully as she could, putting all her weight into it. She knew Jake's strength, and she knew that her weight against his would be pretty useless, but she didn't know what else to do—when Jake was angry there was no telling what _he_ could do.

"Sydney, go!" she yelled at her daughter, who had paused to watch, her eyes wide in horror. Sydney began sobbing even harder as she finally made it to the bathroom and slowly closed the bathroom door behind her. Casey leaned against the door for a moment, trying to take a breath despite her husband basically trying to break through and kill her from the other side. He was screaming things at her, mostly profanities that she couldn't help thinking that she never wanted her daughter to hear, and pounding on the door. She finally realized that she couldn't keep the abuse a secret anymore if she wanted to stay alive. The lock on the door would only hold for so long, and once there was not a door standing between them Jake could easily kill her with his bare hands. Groaning in frustration she grabbed her cell phone from her pocket and dialed the familiar number of the man whom her husband had banned her from seeing. 

* * *

Elliot sighed as he closed the door to his apartment behind him and threw the pizza box that he was holding down on the table. He was so lost in thought about his family and how he was about to spend another night alone that he barely heard his phone ringing. The sound finally brought him back to reality and he answered it just in time.

As soon as he did he felt his pulse start racing. He could hear screaming and pounding in the background, and he could clearly hear a little girl crying—and worst of all he recognized all of the voices even through the phone.

"Casey?" he asked fearfully.

"Elliot, please, I need you to come to my apartment, oh god, send backup, El—" she began before she was cut off by an enormous bang. He heard her scream over a muffled but loud male voice. Her scream caused Sydney to cry even harder, and he could hear her calling for her mother through the phone.

"Hold on, Case, I'm coming," he said quickly. He sprinted outside to his car and immediately flicked the siren lights on as he began speeding to Casey's apartment. He called for backup first, then frantically dialed Olivia's number as he tried to avoid all of the cars honking at him as he swerved in between them.

"Benson," she answered.

"Liv, get over to Casey's _now_."

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know, Liv. She was screaming and Jake was yelling at her and Syd was crying and… I don't know, but it's really bad, Liv. Get over there."

"I'm on my way." 

He tossed his phone on the seat beside him and sped up now that he had two hands on the wheel. He was flipped off by countless people and almost got in several accidents, but he would never forgive himself if he was too late and something irreversible happened.

Having gotten the call first he was the first one at the apartment. He parked his car illegally, ignoring the fire hydrant that was beside him, and began sprinting toward the building. Just as he reached the door he noticed Olivia's car pull up. She sprinted over to meet him, but he never slowed down.

As they reached Casey's floor they heard the commotion, as did many of the neighbors that were standing in the hall in confusion. They pushed past the various people and toward her apartment. Without a moment's hesitation Elliot smashed his foot through the front door, and the noise grew even louder.

As he and Olivia turned into the hallway leading to Casey's room they were immediately met with Jake, who was screaming and ramming himself into the door, knife in hand, in an attempt to push it open. Just as they saw him, however, he finally managed to break the lock. Without the help of the lock on the door, Casey was no match for Jake and he effortlessly flung the door open, throwing Casey back. Olivia screamed as she and Elliot ran forward.

With all of the commotion there was no way that they could get a clear shot without risking hitting Casey in the process, so all they could do was get to her themselves. Elliot finally reached Jake first and pulled his large body off of Casey's petite one and threw him into the wall with more force than necessary before slamming cuffs tightly around his wrist.

"Elliot," he heard Olivia gasp from behind him. He slowly turned around to see that in the mere seconds before he and Olivia reached Jake to pull him away, he had managed to make a deep incision across Casey's abdomen.

After what seemed like an eternity the backup arrived. Elliot practically flung Jake at the other officers, who began reading him his rights as they pulled him away from the scene.

Elliot tore off his shirt and threw it to Olivia, who had been using her hands to apply pressure to the wound to try to slow down the bleeding. She gratefully accepted it and pressed it against the wound. He could tell that Casey was struggling to keep conscious; her eyes were fluttering open and closed as Olivia begged her to stay with them. It wasn't until he heard a small whimper coming from the bathroom that he remembered that he had heard Sydney crying too.

"Sydney?" he called cautiously as he knocked on the door. "It's Elliot, it's safe to come out now." As soon as he finished the sentence the door was thrust open. Sydney only paused for a second in order to find her mother, then ran directly past him and over to Casey before he had a chance to stop her. She gasped as she got a better look at her mother. She paused, standing frozen in fear before slowly sinking down next to Casey.

"It's okay, baby," Casey said weakly, bringing her hand up to her daughter's face even though it took almost all of her effort to do so. Sydney stared at Casey, her huge emerald eyes full of worry as she held her mother's hand. "Mommy's going to be just fine. I'm going to have to go the hospital, though, so when I do I want you to go with Elliot or Livvy, and one of them will probably take you, okay?"

Sydney shook her head violently and her body began to shake with sobs. "Mommy…" she whimpered as she carefully moved closer to Casey's frail body and rested her head next to her mother's. "I want to stay with you. Why do you have to go there?"

"Mommy has a really big boo-boo. She needs them to fix it."

"But I got a boo-boo the other day and I didn't have to go."

"I know, baby, but mommy's boo-boo is very big," she paused as the EMTs rushed in to help her onto a stretcher and into the ambulance. She turned to Olivia, hoping she understood that she didn't want Sydney to see her being taken out on the stretcher. "You go with Livvy or Elliot now, okay?"

"Come on, Syd, I'll take you to the hospital," Olivia said finally with a weak smile as she stood up and gripped the little girl's hand in her own. Sydney stood planted firmly in place as Olivia tried to pull her along, refusing to budge away from her mother. She refused to move, but she didn't object when Olivia reached down to pick her up. Instead she nuzzled her head into Olivia's neck and held her tight as she began to sob even harder.

Elliot kneeled down in the same place Olivia had been as he pressed the shirt against Casey's wound. He knew she was fighting to stay conscious so that she wouldn't scare Sydney; he could hear it in her voice when she talked to her.

"It's okay now, Case," he whispered. "She's gone with Liv." He watched her struggle for a few more seconds before she finally let the unconsciousness overtake her. All he could do was watch silently and pray as the EMTs loaded Casey onto the ambulance.

* * *

By the time Elliot finally entered the waiting room, covered in blood, Sydney had already fallen asleep on Olivia's lap. Olivia hummed softly to her as she just barely rocked her back and forth. She waited until Elliot sat down next to her to speak.

"Is she okay?"

"She'll be fine. She just needs stitches and stuff."

"El, has this been going on for a really long time and we ignored it?" Olivia had never been more afraid to hear the answer in her life.

Elliot shrugged. "I don't know… I don't know how she could have hid this. We suspected it, but it just didn't seem that bad…"

"Livvy?" a timid voice asked. Olivia smiled at Sydney and planted a kiss on her head as she pulled the little girl closer to her chest.

"Yeah?"

"Is mommy okay?" she asked, her voice quaking in fear.

"Your mommy is going to be just fine. She'll want to see you in a little bit," Elliot answered.

"Do you know what happened with your mommy and daddy, sweetie?" Olivia asked carefully. She didn't want to upset Sydney if she had been traumatized from whatever had happened in that house, but she needed to know.

Sydney's eyes immediately filled with tears as she turned to face Olivia. "I spilled my chocolate milk." She lowered her head in shame and brought her hands to her face as if she didn't want anyone to see that she was crying; it reminded Olivia so much of Casey she almost had to laugh.

"There's no need to cry, Syd. It's just a spill."

Sydney finally looked up, her eyes wide. "That's what mommy said," she began, and then hesitated before continuing. "Daddy got really _really_ mad at me. He yelled at me and then he hit me really really hard." She slowly brought her hand up to her face and rested it on the spot where Olivia could only assume he had hit her.

Olivia froze, and she was sure she stopped breathing for a second. Of all people in the world she truly could not believe that Casey would knowingly allow anyone to hurt her daughter, but she was almost afraid to hear it if she had.

"Has your daddy ever hit you before?" Olivia finally asked, having regained her voice before Elliot, who seemed to be just as shocked. She felt a wave of relief wash over her as Sydney shook her head violently and her eyes grew even wider.

"No, mommy got mad at him because he hurt me. She yelled at him and then he stopped talking so I thought he wasn't mad anymore. She never yelled at him before. Then mama told me to go to my room, but I did something bad…"

"What did you do, sweetie? No one will be angry."

Sydney looked down in shame before she spoke. "I didn't go to my room. I peeked. I wanted to know what was going on." 

Olivia smiled at how guilty Sydney felt from something as simple as not going to her room.

"That's okay, honey, what did you see?" Elliot asked her gently.

"Daddy yelled at mommy and said that she shouldn't talk back to him and that he was the boss of her. I know that you're not supposed to talk back, and I know what that means and mama didn't do it. Then he hit mommy really really _really_ hard. He hit her again and again and again and he hurted her and then she fell, and he took something from the table. I don't know what it was, but then mommy got scared and kicked him and then she runned away. Then she saw me peeking and she picked me up and we ran to mommy and daddy's room. She slammed the door really hard, which you are _never_ supposed to do because it's rude and it's bad for the door, and then she locked it. I'm not supposed to do that either…" she trailed off at the end, tears falling down her cheeks. Olivia sat in shock and pulled Sydney even closer to herself. She knew that more than anything Casey would be furious that Sydney had seen everything.

"Sydney, has your daddy ever hit your mommy before?" Elliot asked cautiously.

Sydney seemed to consider it for a moment before nodding slowly. "Yes, but I don't think that I'm supposed to know. Whenever daddy gets mad mama tells me to go to my room. I hear him hurting her though and lots of loud noises. I hear daddy yelling at mommy and I hear mommy crying. Sometimes I peek though, because I want to know what is happening and it's really really scary. Sometimes when I peek he hurts her and then he makes her fall asleep."

Olivia and Elliot both sat in silence, trying to process what they had just heard. She had only been living with Jake for a little while, but they both felt guilty for not taking the signs seriously. There had not been any _serious_ indication of abuse, but they ignored the signs that were there. As if the phone call and Olivia's "confrontation" with Casey weren't enough, they had noticed other things as well. They had noticed that she wouldn't go out with them as much, but Casey was really the only one of them that had a family, let alone a daughter, so they had assumed that that was the reason. Whenever she came in and was tired or irritable she would tell them about how Sydney was up all night, and they never doubted her. Now with Sydney's confession, everything clicked into place.

* * *

Feedback always appreciated, but I would especially love feedback on this chapter. Thanksss, hope you like it, but I want to know if you don't:)

Like I said, this is going to be a quick story.


	4. Chapter Four

Haven't proofread. (Hey, at least I'm honest)

PS: SVU TONIGHT. OH. MY. GOD.

* * *

As soon as the nurse that had been bandaging Casey's wound left the room, Casey finally let herself break down. She couldn't even fathom how she had gotten so deep in this mess. How could she have allowed this to go on for so long? All of the pain, both physical and emotional, finally was at the surface, and with no more reason to conceal them she broke down. Her body wracked with sobs as she shook as she grabbed the pillow from under her head and held it over her face to smother the sound so that she wouldn't cause attention to herself even as she heaved and sobbed.

She had never loved another human being like she had loved Jake, and she had never been more hurt by another human being all in the same. He had hurt her repeatedly, physically and emotionally, and all of it was taking a toll on her.

"Casey?"

Casey froze as she heard a voice acknowledge her from the doorway. She groaned inwardly, blushing in humiliation that she had been caught breaking down like that. She slowly pulled the pillow off of her face and laid it across her stomach, wiping her eyes as well as she could even though she knew they were red and bloodshot.

"You know you have every right to cry right now. You don't have to hide it." Olivia slowly entered the room and lowered herself onto the foot of the bed, keeping her distance from the young attorney. Casey just shrugged and began playing with the edge of the blanket on top of her.

"Casey, I…"

"I'm sorry," Casey blurted out, cutting the detective off midsentence. She dejectedly kept her gaze down so that she wouldn't have to face the detective, but she could feel the detective staring at her.

"Why on earth are you sorry?" Olivia asked. Casey just shrugged again and kept her eyes focused on the blanket. What didn't she have to be sorry for?

"Casey… I don't even know how to respond to that," Olivia began. Casey looked up curiously, meeting Olivia's eyes for a second before looking away again. "I don't know what the hell you think you have to be sorry for, but you have nothing. _I'm_ sorry—we should have taken all of the signs more seriously. I think we were kind of going on false hope that everything was okay. I'm sorry you had to live with that, and I'm sorry we couldn't stop him from hurting you."

Casey felt tears forming at her eyes and hastily shook her head, trying to keep them from falling. When more tears continued to spring, Casey wrapped her arms tightly around herself dug her nails into her skin to try and stop the tears.

"Casey, stop it," Olivia demanded gently as she reached forward and grabbed both of Casey's wrists, lightly placing them down in Casey's lap without letting go. "Honey, it's _okay_ to cry. He hurt you."

Casey could only shake her head as she desperately tried to stop being so weak. "How would you have known?" Casey finally managed to ask. "It's not even like we're friends."

An awkward silence filled the air and Casey momentarily regretted her last statement, but then realized if she didn't ask she wouldn't be able to think of anything else.

"You don't think we're friends?"

"We work together," Casey whispered.

"How could you think that's all? You're all of our friends… you're part of SVU."

"You know that's bullshit. I'm just your ADA, Olivia. I really, _really_ appreciate everything you did for me tonight—you probably saved my life—but that doesn't change the fact that we weren't friends before this. You guys never liked me to begin with."

"Casey, what the hell did he do to you?" Olivia asked, her voice weak, causing Casey to look up and finally hold the older woman's gaze. "Did he make you think this way? You don't work in our squad room, Casey, but you're just as much part of our squad as anyone else. I don't know what kind of crap Jake has been filling your head with, but we wouldn't be here right now if we didn't care about you."

At Olivia's words Casey couldn't keep the tears contained anymore, and she didn't object when the older woman carefully took Casey in her arms and held her as she cried, being cautious not to disturb her wound.

Suddenly a knock on the door interrupted them, and Casey jumped and pulled away as she realized that Elliot was standing there.

* * *

Sydney nervously clung to Elliot as she waited for him to knock on the door to her mom's room. Elliot had told her all about how her mom would have a lot of machines making beeping noises around her. He even told her that her mom would have a huge needle in her arm connected to a bag.

A huge smile appeared on Sydney's face as she heard her mom's voice telling her that it was okay for her to come in. She skipped over to the bed where her mother was lying, but stopped abruptly and took a sharp breath in as she observed her mother.

Elliot had warned her about the machines, but she didn't realize everything would be _that_ scary. Her mom looked so little lying in the hospital bed with crisp white sheets pulled up to her chin.

"Come here, baby, it's okay," her mom said quietly as she used a button on the bed to sit up more. Sydney slowly approached her mother on the bed, being extra careful not to mess up any equipment and not to hurt her mom. Olivia stood up and left the room with Elliot as Sydney came to the bed and let Sydney take her spot.

"I'm so sorry, Syd," her mom said softly. Sydney looked up to see that moisture had formed in her mom's eyes. She curled up next to her mom and nestled her head into her mom's neck, smiling as her mom kissed the top of her head.

"Honey, I am so sorry about what happened tonight. I'm so sorry you had to see it and I am _so_ sorry for what daddy did."

Sydney kept her head buried as tears of her own began to form.

"I'm so sorry I let him hurt you, Syd. I promise you, I will never let anyone hurt you again. I never thought he would hurt you, sweetie, and I'm so sorry I was wrong. I just wanted you to be happy."

"He's hurt you before, mommy," Sydney said softly as she pulled away so that she could talk to her mom. She saw something flash through her mother's eyes before her mom looked away.

"How did you know that?" her mom finally asked.

Sydney took a deep breath. "I hear him. Sometimes I peek, too."

"Sydney, honey, why did you never say anything?" her mom asked. Sydney said nothing and just waited for her mom to continue. "I stayed with Jake because he started being bad right after he came to live with us. You were just getting used to him being there, and I didn't want to make him leave right when you got used to him. I just wish I had known, I would have made sure you were safe."

Sydney sat silently, utterly confused by her mother's words. She stared blankly at her mother, waiting for some sort of explanation. She sort of understood what her mom was trying to say, but she was pretty lost.

Suddenly her mom started laughing, and then she wrapped her arms around Sydney and pulled her closer to herself, wincing slightly but ignoring the pain in her abdomen. "I'm sorry, hun, I forget I'm talking to a five-year-old sometimes. Anyway, I'm so sorry about everything. I promise, honey, I will protect you. Daddy is going to go away and I won't let anyone hurt you, okay? I love you so much, Sydney."

Sydney threw her arms even tighter around her mother and buried her face in her mother's chest. She felt her mom flinch as she squeezed maybe just a little too hard, but she ignored it and held her mom tighter.

Although she was crying a small smile appeared on Sydney's face as she held her mom. Things didn't work out with her dad, but as she clung to her mother she realized that she already had everything she needed in the world, just in that bed.

* * *

Ending?? More?? Let me know.

Eh kind of hate this, but I'm leaving for two weeks and wanted to at least have something up! I'd love feedback. Criticism works (constructive, of course… or any really).


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